Meet the 2023-24 Anti-racism Student Fellows

Dec 6, 2023 | Racism and Bias

Our mission is to support and advance the lifelong pursuit of anti-racism, equity, and racial justice across the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Anti-racism Student Fellows will work closely with Icahn Mount Sinai leaders across all functional areas of the School of Medicine and the Graduate School, and report directly to the Institute for Equity and Justice in Health Sciences Education. Fellows will serve as an invaluable capacity-building resource for school and institution-wide anti-racism initiatives.

 

“It is such an inspiration to welcome this year’s cohort of Fellows, especially as we transition from the Center for Anti-Racism in Practice to a new Institute that is wholly dedicated to addressing racism and bias in health professions education. Our national and professional landscape has become much more complex, with new barriers and challenges to this work emerging with worrisome regularity. It is comforting to know that the passion and determination among our students has not waned, and that they stand ready to strengthen and reinforce our efforts for the coming year.”

—David Muller, MD, Director, Institute for Equity and Justice in Health Sciences Education

Meet the Medical Education Fellows

Carina Seah

MD/PhD Candidate
Project: Mitigating biological essentialism in teaching of race vs ancestry concepts in medical/graduate education

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“Creatively implementing our bioessentialism curriculum into the medical and graduate school, and watching learners digest and build instincts to performing better research.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“Teleportation. Five minutes between meetings? I can say hi to my mom in Oakland, or my dad in Vietnam. Being able to feed my soul with my loved ones is the key to longevity in this line of work!”

Jerrel Catlett

MD/PhD Candidate
Project: Designing the Advocacy, Social Justice, and Anti-oppression Thread in the Curriculum Redesign

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m most looking forward to helping our institution integrate anti-racist praxis into the preclinical curriculum in a way that feels worthwhile to students and complements our growing medical knowledge.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“Definitely super-speed. The ability to zoom through labyrinthine hospital floors, do mundane administrative tasks quickly, and dramatically shorten my commute would hopefully allow me much more time to connect personally with my future patients and spend more quality time with my family after work.”

Tracy Okine

MD/PhD Candidate
Project: Coordinating Anti-racist Strategies Across Student Groups

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am very honored to be selected as an RBI fellow this year, having learned so much in the past 2 years from engaging with the fellowship and students. With all the lessons, highs and lows in mind, I am looking forward to continuing to learn from all the wonderful people involved in this work, especially my direct mentor, while contributing my perspective and skills to providing solutions.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have any superpower in my future career, it would be the ability to heal anything! I have learnt a lot by engaging in the preclinical course work, and now in my PhD I’m enjoying the wonder and opportunity of basic science research. It’s been very inspiring to see how medicine has changed over centuries, and how things that we once found very confusing, become easier to solve. However, there is still so much discovery to be made, and so much discovery to translate to actual solutions. So in the meantime, I would want to be able to heal anything -disease, injury, affliction, concern- as my superpower.”

Hope Lefebvre

MD Candidate

Project: Equity in Student Awards

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am looking forward to collaborating with and learning from the anti-racism in medical education team! I am excited that the results of this project will have direct impacts on equity at Icahn SOM and for our class.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“My superpower would be to freeze or add time in any day. I would have more time to help patients, commit to interesting projects, and spend with friends and family.”

Francesca Silvestri

MD Candidate
Project: ART in Med Ed

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most looking forward to working and connecting with other institutions through the ART in Med Ed project. It is an exciting and novel opportunity to pilot our work through RBI to other institutions and learn about how anti-racist medical education exists and lives at other institutions.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“I am applying into Emergency Medicine, so I would want my super power to be mind reading. I think it would help me clinically and in life in general!”

Tsion Tmariam

MD/PhD Candidate
Project: Connecting with Undergraduate Pre-Health Student Affinity Groups

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am looking forward to working with our admissions team to connect with undergraduate pre-health affinity groups and bridge the gap between pre-med URiM students and medicine as a whole. I hope to solidify the relationships we build throughout the year, and ensure their sustainability as our institution continues to grow.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have a superpower, it would be the power to understand and speak all of the languages of the world. This would provide me the ability to care for patients from all backgrounds and walks of life. Furthermore it would improve my cultural competency and knowledge, allowing me to understand my patients and their needs on a deeper level.”

Rachel Kasdin

MD Candidate
Project: ART in Med Ed

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most looking forward to being a member of the Anti-Racist Transformation in Medical Education Team to continue the exciting work that we began last year, especially in organizing the Challenging Norms conference. Being an ART in MedEd Fellow allows me to learn from ISMMS’s existing anti-racist practices, push the institution further towards these values and, most importantly, share what we have learned thus far with peer institutions in the United States and Canada.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have a superpower, it would be being able to learn any language I wanted very quickly! It would be great to be able to interact with patients in their own languages to connect more deeply and care for them more effectively.”

Wayland Chiu

MD Candidate
Project: ART in Med Ed

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am looking forward to continuing to work with Rachel Kasdin, Chloe Martin, as well as Drs. Muller and Hess, as well as working alongside our newest team member – Francesca Silvestri!  We will be continuing to establish a strong community of practice among students from the various schools in the ART in Med Ed cohort, examine the ways in which the ART in Med Ed initiative has helped other institutions integrate anti-racist practices into their curriculum, and potentially host another conference next year to highlight the amazing work people are doing across the country to implement anti-racism in medical education!”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have one superpower to help my future career, it would be the ability to slow down time within an area around me.  Time is so valuable because it is a resource we can never get more of, and because it is limited we never achieve everything we want or need to do.  With the ability to slow down time around me, I could achieve more and do the things I often have to sacrifice for the sake of time, like reading, exercising, meditating, and other personal things.  It would also be useful in my future career as a physician, because by slowing time in the exam room, I could spend more time with patients and not rush through their visit because I have other patients to see.”

Jennifer Dias

MD Candidate
Project: Leading the RBI Student Sphere

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“Now with four years of medical school under my belt, I am eager to pass on my learnings and experiences to the next generation of medical students. I view mentorship as a crucial aspect of education, and I am excited to guide and support fellow students in their transformational change work.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“Microscopic vision, to operate on children with delicately complex anatomy.”

Spencer Johnson

MD/PhD Candidate
Project: Building a Mechanism to Track Equity in Policies

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m most looking forward to working with / learning from others at the Institute, and getting a chance to apply some of what I’ve learned about health equity in real time.”

 

Meet the Graduate Education Fellows

KG Montes

PREP-Y2
Project: Change Target Development 

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m looking forward to working directly with faculty to implement anti-racist changes at Sinai and to learning how to further elevate marginalized voices in STEM. ”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have a superpower to help me in my future career, I would choose to be fluent in all languages/forms of communication, including ASL. That way, I could effectively communicate with marginalized groups and properly represent their needs to administration.”

Taelor Matos

NIH-PREP
Project: Change Target Development 

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most looking forward to working with the senior leadership to meaningfully expand and deepen mentorship opportunities for trainees under the transformational change strategy.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“If I could have a superpower to help me in my future career, it would be the ability to learn new skills within minutes!”

Dania Figueroa Acosta,

PhD Candidate
Project: Change Target Development

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most looking forward to working with a group of individuals, both staff and students who are as passionate about building an antiracist learning environment and incorporating social justice into STEM.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“I would love to read minds, it would certainly help in understanding people’s interests and motivations as I work to educate and advocate for resources for marginalized populations.”

Kayla Townsley

PhD Candidate
Project: Mitigating biological essentialism in teaching of race vs ancestry concepts in medical/graduate education

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am excited to contribute to a new educational imperative within the biomedical sciences; one that is anti-racist in practice, fully considering the intersections of racism, sexism, and ableism, and transforms the ways that we as scientists ask questions.”

If you could have a superpower to help you in your future career, what would it be and why? 

“I would want the ability to get a perfect night’s rest every night – I think everyone can relate to that on some level.”

The Anti-racism Student Fellowship could not be possible without the leadership of Medical Education and Graduate Education, The Institute for Equity and Justice in Health Sciences Education, our project administrators across the School, and the advocacy and dedication of our students. The Fellowship ensures that students who participate in anti-racism efforts have an opportunity to be compensated for their work, and to be directly mentored by antiracism thought leaders at Icahn Mount Sinai.

Please join us in congratulating and welcoming our new cohort of Fellows as they commence their Fellowship and take on a vital role at our school. If you have any questions about the Anti-racism student fellowship, please email jay.johnson@mssm.edu. You can learn additional details about this year’s fellowship projects here.

Racism and Bias Initiative (RBI) x Center for Anti-Racism in Practice (CAP) Fellowship for Icahn School of Medicine Students

Racism and Bias Initiative (RBI) x Center for Anti-Racism in Practice (CAP) Fellowship for Icahn School of Medicine Students

Aug 16, 2023 | Racism and Bias

Our mission is to support and advance the lifelong pursuit of anti-racism, equity, and racial justice as the organizing principles of medical education at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS).

RBI x CAP Fellows will work closely with ISMMS leaders across all functional areas of the school of medicine and report directly to the co-Directors of the Center for Anti-Racism in Practice. Fellows will serve as an invaluable capacity-building resource for school and institution-wide anti-racism initiatives.

 

Applications Open: Tuesday, September 5 at 2 pm

Applications Close: Tuesday, September 19 at 11:59 pm

As a fellow, here’s what you’ll do:

While any of these activities may result in a scholarly product,

the primary purpose of RBI x CAP Fellows is to expand the workforce

focused on anti-racism work for the Icahn School of Medicine

at Mount Sinai. 

 

Fellow projects for the 2023-2024 cycle are:

Building a Mechanism to Track Equity in Policies

  • Unit: Medical Education Administration, Department of Medical Education

  • Project supervisors: Colleen Hayden, EdD, Director of Quality, Compliance, & Accreditation and Leona Hess, PhD, Senior Director of Strategy and Equity Education Programs

  • Project Description: As part of the Racism and Bias Initiative’s guiding coalition change targets, a protocol was developed and implemented to conduct an equity audit on fifteen student facing policies. The next phase of the audit is to develop a mechanism to track relevant data points to determine the extent to which selected policies are implemented and/or enforced equitably. The fellow will collaborate with Student Affairs and Curricular Affairs to design and implement a new mechanism.  

Coordinating Anti-Racist Strategies Across Student Groups

  • Unit: Office for Diversity & Inclusion
  • Project Description: As part of the Racism and Bias Initiative’s guiding coalition change targets, the goal is to provide a space for student group members to dialogue, dream, and design strategies for how to incorporate anti-racism into their programming and efforts. This project will involve the co-planning and project management of 3 annual anti-racist retreats for student groups, in coordination with the Office for Diversity and Inclusion/Center for Multicultural and Community Affairs, the Racism and Bias Initiatives of the medical and graduate schools, the Student Council URiSM Representatives, and other stakeholders as needed. The fellow will schedule and manage meetings with the planning team; maintain detailed notes; organize retreat materials; promote and market the retreats; co-facilitate the retreats; assess feedback; and report back themes and critical findings to the guiding coalition.
  • Project Supervisor: Ashley Michelle Fowler, MEd, Administrative Program Manager
    •  

Establishing a Sustainable Connection between Undergraduate Pre-Health Student Affinity Groups and the ISMMS

  • Unit: Admissions, Department of Medical Education 
  • Project Description: This project aims to create a lasting and beneficial relationship between undergraduate pre-health student affinity groups and the Icahn School of Medicine. The fellow will build relationships, establish a mentorship program, organize campus visits and collaborative events, facilitate connections to enrich research and clinical experiences, conduct professional development workshops, and develop a long-term sustainability plan. Through this project, the goal is to support undergraduate students from historically excluded groups interested in pursuing medical careers, promote diversity in healthcare, and create a nurturing environment that fosters success. 
  • Project Supervisor: Jessica Maysonet 

Sustaining a Community of Practice Among Medical students Across the Country and Canada

Newly selected fellows will work in collaboration with existing Fellows working on this effort.

Designing the Advocacy, Social Justice, and Anti-oppression Thread in the Curriculum Redesign

  • Unit: Curricular Affairs and Center for Anti-racism in Practice  
  • Project Description: In November 2021, the Office of Curricular Affairs began the process of curriculum redesign for the MD program. As part of the new curriculum design there is an Advocacy, Social Justice, and Anti-Oppression (ASA) thread that is designed to equip all students with the knowledge and skills they need to address social determinants of health and promote health equity for all patients with a particular focus on the impact of racism as a social determinant of health. It prepares future physicians to be effective advocates for their patients and to work towards a more equitable health system. The fellow will join the ASA workgroup and partner with the instructional designer consultant to develop an ASA curricular map and relevant learning activities. 
  • Project Supervisor: Leona Hess, PhD, Senior Director of Strategy and Equity Education Programs and Consultant

Developing an Equity-centered Approach Graduation Awards Nomination and Selection Process

  • Unit: Student Affairs, Department of Medical Education  
  • Project Description: In Graduation and departmental awards are a long-held tradition in medical schools and have real implications in the academic careers of medical students. This project seeks to identity equity-centered practices in nominating and selecting awardees to inform the development of a framework that can be applied to our medical school’s process. The fellow will review the literature on equity-centered practices, evaluate ISMMS current award selection process with an equity lens, develop an equity-centered framework and protocol that will be applied to the 2024 graduation wards process, conduct a post-award selection evaluation and amend protocol and develop recommendation, if necessary.
  • Project Supervisors: Alicia Hurtado, MD and Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH

RBI Student Sphere

  • Unit: Department of Medical Education, Racism & Bias Initiative
  • Project Description:
  • As part of the Racism and Bias Initiative’s (RBI) change management plan, our commitment is to establish a diverse guiding coalition of faculty, staff, leadership, and students to determine the change targets, identify options for implementation, make decisions about where energy and resources should be focused, and determine how to hold people accountable, and manage resistance in the medical school and beyond. The guiding coalition is made up of seven spheres or functional areas: Admissions, Curricular Affairs, Student Affairs, Clinical, Resources, Medical School-Wide and Student. The Student Sphere lead will participate in Guiding Coalition planning meetings and processes, and will be responsible for the development, implementation, and monitoring of the change Targets in the student Sphere. The Lead will also serve as liaison for student involvement in Chats for Change, Orientation and other RBI Sphere work.
  • Project Supervisor: Leona Hess, PhD

Propose Your Own Project

This year we are offering an opportunity for a fellow to propose and execute an innovative project of their own. In the application you will have the opportunity to submit a potential project name, supervisors, description, outcomes/deliverables, and responsibilities. We are looking for a project that is:

  • Aligned with our mission to nurture a visionary community of students, staff, faculty and leaders who are committed to advancing exceptional clinical care and science that is free of racism and oppression in all its forms;
  • Designed to address a gap or concern related to our learning environment;
  • Achievable in 8 months; and 
  • Innovative and doesn’t duplicate or complete with the current twenty-four change targets 

Fellows will:

  • be closely mentored by Med Ed leadership and CAP
  • work with or be a liaison to other relevant medical school administrators, students, and partners including but not limited to the Office for Diversity & Inclusion and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
  • be part of a Fellows community of practice and mutual support
  • learn anti-racist and anti-oppressive teaching, facilitation, and reflection practices
  • learn leadership, communication, and conflict resolution skills
  • have opportunities to develop projects into scholarly products
  • develop the capacity to design and facilitate equity programming beyond medical school, in residency training and their professional careers
  • when applicable, manage a modest programming budget and submit required documentation to Med Ed administration
  • receive a stipend of $5,000 for every year that they serve as a fellow

Fellow Requirements:

  • Approximately 20 hours/month for the eight-month commitment.
  • Fellows may apply to renew their commitment in subsequent years, up to their full tenure at ISMMS.
  • Student on Scholarly Year may not apply for a RBI x CAP Fellowship
  • Participate in two training/program planning lunches each semester that will bring together all Fellows.
  • Complete one scheduled check-in per semester with the Dean for Medical Education.
  • Fellows will present their work to the RBI Guiding Coalition, Senior Leadership Committee, and other key stakeholders in a “re-CAP” presentation at the close of the Fellowship
  • Up to eight fellows will be selected to participate.

Application Process

Candidates will be required to submit their CV and answer several questions in a total of 500 words or less.

Submitted applications will be reviewed and scored by a selection committee composed of members of the Racism and Bias Initiative Guiding Coalition (Medical Education faculty, staff, leaders, and students). Each reviewer will consider your alignment with the School’s vision and values, and your track record of contributions/leadership in addressing racism and bias.

Ready to apply?

Submit all applications by Tuesday, September 19 at 11:59 pm EST.

Apply Now

Meet the RBI x CAP Fellows

Oct 11, 2022 | Racism and Bias, Uncategorized

Our mission is to support and advance the lifelong pursuit of anti-racism, equity, and racial justice as the organizing principles of medical education at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS).

RBI x CAP Fellows will work closely with ISMMS leaders across all functional areas of the school of medicine and report directly to the co-Directors of the Center for Anti-Racism in Practice (CAP). Fellows will serve as an invaluable capacity-building resource for school and institution-wide anti-racism initiatives.

 

Meet the Fellows

Carina Seah

MD/PhD Candidate, Fourth-year Student
Project: Mitigating biological essentialism in teaching of race vs ancestry concepts in medical/graduate education

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m most looking forward to impacting how doctors and researchers are trained to generate new knowledge–asked, created, and communicated through an anti-racist, community-centered, and equity-first lens.“

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“Marie Curie, for her barrier-breaking science, commitment to equitable access of her discoveries, and her humility. I’d ask her for her thoughts on overcoming systems of power and oppression without succumbing to them.”

Daniella Nevid

MD Candidate, Second-year Student

Project: RBI Student Sphere

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most looking forward to working alongside my co-fellows to create new initiatives and programming that will activate the student body and sow both an excitement and an imperative among students to participate in antiracist work during their time at Sinai.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I would ask Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel his advice because as a civil rights activist, I believe he would provide unique insight to help advance our work in RBI, and, as a philosopher, I imagine he would have a distinctly inspirational way of delivering it.”

Don Nguyen

MD/PhD Candidate, Sixth-year Student

Project: Anti-Oppressive Curriculum Revamp

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am very excited to help revamp the medical school curriculum and hopefully make a positive impact on education of Anti-oppression for future generations of Mount Sinai medical students.”

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I would seek advice from Audre Lorde and ask her how she balanced her commitment to activism with her own wellbeing and personal life.”

Edward Sarfo

MD Candidate, Second-year Student

Project: Situational Judgment Tests

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am excited to learn and do my part in critically examining how this new AAMC PREview test would be utilized to not further aggravate racism and bias, and also to fulfill Sinai’s anti-racist mission. Despite the increasing number of methods for evaluating medical school applicants, it is essential that these methods are scrutinized through an equity lens.”

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I choose Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana’s first president who liberated the country from British colonial rule. After Ghana’s independence, he had a vision for an African continent that was fully independent, united, and strong. Until his untimely death, he worked to restore the dignity that was eroded from Africans as a result of colonialism and the slave trade. In the same way that the black and white keys of a piano work together to create harmony, Dr. Nkrumah fought for equality and a world without racism. This world could use some of Dr. Nkrumah’s advice.”

Jerrel Catlett

MD/PhD Candidate, Third-year Student

Project: Situational Judgment Tests

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m looking forward to having the opportunity to create new paradigms for evaluating prospective students that gives greater weight to their commitment to dismantling racism and bias in the medical field.”

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I would want to have a conversation with the prolific restaurateur and humanitarian José Andrés to ask for advice on how to leverage my disparate passions for medical research and culinary pursuits to improve the lives of communities of color within New York City.”

Marcia Lange

MD/PhD Candidate, Fourth-year Student

Project: Anti-Oppressive Curriculum Revamp

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am looking forward to improving our medical curriculum and that of other schools so that we can as a profession learn how to better serve our patients, peers, and communities in a healthcare environment that takes into account the impact of power, inequality, and oppression on health and wellbeing.”

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“If I could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, it would likely be Dr Uche Blackstock, one of my idols! She is a trailblazer in the diversity, inclusion, and racial equity sphere in healthcare and I would love to get advice on what she believes are the highest priorities in terms of creating a workplace and learning environment free of bias and racism.”

Nasseef Quasim

MD Candidate, Second-year Student

Project: RBI Student Sphere

 

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am most excited to learn more about anti racist work and how to put into action in a way that many students want to engage with.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I would ask for advice from Matthieu Ricard. He’s been called the happiest person in the world, yet says he knows those that are even happier. Wouldn’t be bad to learn more about simple joy from him and others.”

Paloma Orozco Scott

MD Candidate, Fourth-year Student

Project: Equity Policy Audit

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I’m excited to apply all I’ve learned from RBI, Dr. Hess, Dr. Palermo, Dr. Leisman, Dr. Meah, Dr. Soriano, and the many other mentors I’ve had at Sinai towards analyzing Sinai medical education policy’s impact on equity, justice, and anti-racism. As a fourth year, this feels like a culminating moment where my experiences will help me leave a legacy of anti-racist and improved policies/processes for the students who come next.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“I would ask for advice from my maternal Grandmother, Antonia Ramirez. She developed Alzheimer’s before I could ask her this question, but I would ask how despite the massive adversities in her life she remained a positive person who exuded love of life and family?”

Rachel Kasdin

MD Candidate, First-year Student

Project: ART in MedEd

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“One of my top priorities in choosing a medical school was to ensure that my education would be defined by a commitment to scientific rigor and an institutional willingness to grapple with the historical and contemporary systems of oppression that shape medical education and medical care. While the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai stands out amongst its peers in its dedication to diversity and dismantling racism, its mission to do so remains urgent, challenging, and necessary. I am most looking forward to being a member of the Anti-Racist Transformation in Medical Education Team because of the platform it will give me to learn from ISMMS’s existing anti-racist practices, push the institution further towards its vision and, most importantly, share what we have learned thus far with peer institutions in the United States and Canada.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“Although perhaps not a historical figure, my paternal grandma is who comes to mind first. As I became an adult, she developed dementia and lost her ability to speak before passing away in 2019. I wish I could go back in time to when she was well enough to give me advice, or that she could give my adult-self advice. She directed a nursery school for years and was a central pillar in the communities she was a part of at this school, at her synagogue, among her friends, and in my extended family. She inhabited these roles, however, with a quiet confidence and fierce love/loyalty for those who she thought might need it most or who she noticed were pushed away by others. I often find myself pausing to wonder what wisdom she would share with me now if she could.”

Tracy Okine

MD/PhD Candidate, Second-year Student

Project: RBI Student Sphere

 

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“I am looking forward to many things including working with the faculty involved, serving the student sphere, and building on my skills in this area through mentorship while sharing my perspective via initiatives.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“This a tough one. For advice specifically, I think Dr. Maya Angelou or Dr. Santiago Ramon Y Cajal or my great grandmother!”

Wayland Chiu

MD Candidate, First-year Student

Project: ART in MedEd

What are you looking forward to most about your project?

“What I am looking forward to most about being part of the Anti-Racist Transformation in Medical Education project is helping to make a difference in the way medical institutions engage medical students to think critically about race from a structural and personal level, which I believe will ultimately elevate patient care by training students to become culturally competent physicians.”

 

If you could ask for advice from any historical figure, past or present, who would it be and why? 

“If I could ask for advice from any historical figure, it would have to be from Zhuge Liang (also called Kong Ming) who is arguably the most brilliant mind in all of Chinese history.  He is mostly known for being a legendary diplomat, advisor, and battle tactician during the Three Kingdoms period and was later immortalized in the Chinese novel/epic “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” which is one of the four great Chinese literary works.  In addition to his political and military roles, Zhuge Liang was also an accomplished inventor, author, and philosopher with experience and expertise spanning a wide range of subjects.  When faced with seemingly impossible challenges, he thoroughly analyzed the resources and circumstances around him to create elegant solutions.  If I were to ever require advice, I would rely on his resourcefulness and breadth of knowledge to solve whatever problem I was facing.”

The RBI x CAP Fellowship could not be possible without the leadership of Medical Education, Racism & Bias Initiative (RBI), the Center for Antiracism in Practice (CAP), our project administrators across the School, and the advocacy and dedication of our students. The Fellowship ensures that students who participate in anti-racism efforts have an opportunity to be compensated for their work, and to be directly mentored by antiracism thought leaders at Icahn Mount Sinai.

Please join us in congratulating and welcoming our second cohort of Fellows as they commence their RBI x CAP Fellowship and take on a vital role at our school. If you have any questions about the RBI x CAP Fellowship, please email jay.johnson@mssm.edu. You can learn additional details about this year’s fellowship projects here.

What’s New with Chats for Change?

Sep 30, 2022 | Racism and Bias, Uncategorized

 

 At the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Chats for Change was built on the notion that in order to respond to racism and to be anti-racist we must engage in dialogue, learning and action.

 

Beginning in the fall of 2018, the Department of Medical Education launched Chats for Change—a series of sessions that spark dialogue centered on racism and bias in medicine. The idea of Chats for Change was developed in response to medical education staff and medical students who wanted dedicated time to engage in a dialogue as a community to deepen our understanding and ability to address racism.

 All faculty, staff, trainees, students and others within the health system are invited to engage in dialogue and work towards common understanding by contributing their best thinking, knowing that other peoples’ reflections help to improve their thinking rather than destroy it. We are committed to engaging in dialogue in order to help us reveal our assumptions and biases for self-revaluation.

 By participating in Chats for Change, we offer an opportunity for attendees to explore key concepts related to racism and bias and uncover who they are in relation to others. Even though the dialogue is structured, the expectation is for attendees to express themselves from their own lived perspectives and listen for deeper understanding and insight.

 In August 2020, we launched the national edition of Chats for Change, a series of monthly dialogues focused on topics related to racism and bias in medicine. All medical schools from across the country and Canada are welcome—staff, faculty, trainees, leadership and students.

 

The Process

Each Chats for Change follows the same format:

  1. We open each session with a check in and a review of the grounding assumptions.
  2. The facilitators then introduce a concept or topic related to racism and bias.
  3. To level set knowledge we provide a frame and definition.
  4. The group then goes into breakout rooms to discuss the guiding questions related to the concept or topic.
  5. We then return to the larger group for debrief and close the session with a reflection about what we need to learn or unlearn.

Feedback

Out of 311 respondents:

  • 92% of respondents reported that Chats for Change simulates their interest in the topic.
  • 85% reported Chats for Change dialogue will help them take sound action in the future.
  • 95% would recommend Chats for Change to a colleague or peer.

To the right is what a few attendees had to say about their experience with Chats for Change:

“I find Chats for Change amongst the most valuable learning sessions that I have ever had at Mount Sinai. I have grown through them. Thank you.”

“This venue allows for respectful open and honest conversations with colleagues and allows me to think of different ways to do my work and hear specific examples of things that have worked in other universities.” 

“What I really appreciated about this was the small bite sized ways that we could engage with the content”

“I’m just fatigued. It helps and feels validating to hear other people experiencing similar experiences and feelings as me.”

Here’s how you can get involved with Chats for Change.

 
Attend Chats for Change

Join the National Chats for Change to conclude the three-part series called In the News. The media is a powerful socialization tool that creates unspoken attitudes, beliefs, and narratives through messages and images. We often do not stop, reflect, and analyze how this tool impacts us as individuals and the environments in which we work and learn. 

Join Us on Zoom.
Become a Facilitator

If you are interested in learning more about how to facilitate Chats for Change, please sign up to attend one of our upcoming trainings. Space is limited.

  • 10/19 11:00-12:00p EST 
  • 10/20 3:00-4:00p EST 
  • 10/24 1:00-2:00p EST 
  • 10/26 1:00-2:00p EST 
Tell Me More.
Download New Content

We are making the Chats for Change slide decks available. Please fill out this brief form to gain access to the shared folder. We are launching the Say what you mean, mean what you say series first.

Decks on Demand.

Shout Outs

Last but not least, we would like to recognize the Chats for Change core group facilitator group for their dedication and commitment to this work. We have facilitated over a hundred and twenty topics with over 3,000 attendees. Congrats!

 

Special thanks to:
Alia Barnes, MPH   |  Ashley Michelle Fowler, MEd  |  Leona Hess, PhD, MSW  |  Jay Johnson, CHES  |  Jenn Meyer, MPH, MSW  |  David Muller, MD  |  Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH  |  Pete Zweig, MPA 

On the Pulse: June Action Update

Jun 29, 2022 | Racism and Bias, Uncategorized

This month, we ramped up our communication efforts to inform specific stakeholders of our progress and we diligently worked to make our twenty-four change targets actionable and impactful.

Admissions Sphere

The Admissions Sphere is planning for the new Admissions Committee members to build upon the wins of previous admissions cycles after developing the 2022-2023 training and setting the agenda and toolkit for the Faculty Development Process. Sphere members have finalized the committee demographics survey and will be administering it in July.

Clinical Sphere

The Curriculum Clinic Series, sponsored by the Center for Antiracism in Practice (CAP), ended a second full cycle, with 50+ course and clerkship directors having participated in three workshops. Feedback for the most recent sessions have been increasingly positive, and logistical planning for the upcoming Fall series is underway.

Curricular Affairs Sphere

The Curricular Affairs Sphere will share a new update in upcoming months.

Student Affairs Sphere

The Student Affairs Sphere will share a new update in upcoming months.

Student Resources Sphere

The Student Resources Sphere has made steady progress toward achieving its change targets. They have begun to compile learning and professional development resources. In doing so, the sphere will serve as a conduit in connecting staff to resources that cultivate an environment of anti-racism across the Department. Sphere members met with ODI and plans to connect with CAP and Admissions to continue gathering resources. In the process of determining a database/accessible space to catalog all resources.

Student Sphere

This month the Student Sphere began orientation planning for RBI programming for the class of 2026. They have analyzed data from the spring student group retreat and are planning the programming for the fall student group retreat. The EHHOP DEIA Subcommittee Chair has began to develop curriculum for an anti-racist clinical skills training for senior clinicians at EHHOP. Lastly, sphere members have begun research on best practices for communication and marketing strategies on how to engage students in anti-racist work.

Medical School-Wide

The Medical School-Wide Sphere accomplished several major progress checkpoints on our change targets. In May, we conducted the first Unity in Action (UiA) town hall which received an overwhelming amount of support that the town hall promoted dialogue related to racism and bias. We continue to make strides toward our vision to become a health system and health professions school with the most diverse workforce, providing health care and education that is free of racism and bias. As we consider and prepare the fall town hall, we will continue to ensure that we are striving towards our vision. Chats for Change is expanding, we’re developing a structure to support hospital-based dialogue. The sphere has decided to shift the silo-busting target to support a trauma-informed, restorative justice-focused response strategy with a dedicated team who can support students who experience incidents of racism and bias in the educational environment. Regarding the Climate Survey, planning is underway for focus groups to discuss the survey results. Lastly, we are brainstorming how to conduct an equity-review of student and staff department policies, using a literature review as the foundation. 

For more information about the on-going focused work within the spheres, check out the Change Targets tracker and our latest release of the RBI April 2021 Action Update.

Change Targets
RBI Action Update

On the Pulse: May Action Update

May 23, 2022 | Racism and Bias, Uncategorized

This month, we ramped up our communication efforts to inform specific stakeholders of our progress and we diligently worked to make our twenty-four change targets actionable and impactful.

Admissions Sphere

The Admissions Sphere has formed a plan for the 2023 application cycle, and is currently organizing materials and information in order to educate and train existing and new Admissions Committee members. It is time to begin the onboarding process of both new faculty and student members to the Admissions Committee. Sphere members are almost done refining the committee demographics survey that will be administered in July. 

Clinical Sphere

Health Equity journal clubs continue monthly in Pediatrics and are inter-professional. Draft written policies/procedures for the journal club were approved by the stakeholders in Pediatrics. New members and leaders will be recruited over the summer of 2022.

Curricular Affairs Sphere

The Curricular Affairs Sphere will share a new update in upcoming months.

Student Affairs Sphere

The Student Affairs Sphere will share a new update in upcoming months.

Student Resources Sphere

The Student Resources Sphere has made steady progress toward achieving its change targets. Nearly all Med Ed staff will have participated in an unconscious bias workshop facilitated by a certified ODI-Med Ed trainer. Participation in this workshop will enable staff to apply strategies for practicing conscious awareness, and identify and mitigate the effects of bias.  Additionally, the Student Resources Sphere has begun to compile learning and professional development resources. In doing so, the sphere will serve as a conduit in connecting staff to resources that cultivate an environment of anti-racism across the Department.

Student Sphere

The student sphere has begun recruiting students and faculty members to plan for the Person-Role-System orientation series for the class of 2026. Sphere members are researching best practices for engaging students in transformational change and enhancing our communications to increase visibility within the student body.

Medical School-Wide

The medical-school wide sphere has developed a schedule for the Unity in Action town halls. The first Unity in Action town hall of the year is scheduled for May 26, led by representatives from both the graduate and medical schools. Additionally, the summer series for Chats for Change has been finalized, with facilitators from various areas of the medical school and hospital leadership who are leading the dialogue. The medical-school wide sphere has decided to pivot from researching silo-busting techniques to researching how faculty members can incorporate trauma informed techniques into medical education. 

For more information about the on-going focused work within the spheres, check out the Change Targets tracker and our latest release of the RBI April 2021 Action Update.

Change Targets
RBI Action Update